A beat
by RedPistachio
Summary: He always responded promptly. The only silence was when right before she said anything.


"If we don't return within 24 hours assume we aren't coming back. Go ahead and seal up the hole. Pretend we never existed."

There was a beat.  
He gave her an order. The mans usual manic grin was set in a different emotion, stubborn determination. She gave an approving nod, that was exactly what she expected from her men. Survival of the fittest, there was no point to recklessly endanger the rest of Briggs to ensure one search party got back safe.

"Very well. Thats what I'll do."

There was a thud as the lid swung close, another thud when two men pushed a crate over the door, hiding its existence wonderfully. Kimblee and his men were still roaming about, it would help no one if they found out. A toss of a watch to keep the time, to keep the schedule, and she was gone.

* * *

"Major General."

A beat. The voice was as rough as they came.  
"Buccaneer."  
He was saluting, if only for a moment. As soon as he was recognized he stopped, relaxed. "Your so late coming back I almost gave you up for dead."

She didn't mean to be funny, but he was laughing nonetheless.  
"Sorry to disappoint you, sir. Guess you're stuck with me."

A pause while she decided whether or not to comment. It wasn't needed.  
"Did you find the scouting party?"  
"Yes, sir. Only two survivors."

Only two, that meant she had lost six men down there in a day. Too many.  
"I see..."  
"May I ask what you're doing up here."

A personal question, one of the few she was ever asked.  
"Sure."  
There was no need to lie, nothing offensive about the question. No reason not to answer it. "I was looking at the mountains."  
She could have ended there. "Briggs is at it's best in the winter. Everything becomes black and white." An easy area, no grey or blurred colours and lines. "I love the simplicity of it."

"Is that right? But sir.." Now he was contradicting her. She tore her glance away from the scenery, looking at the bear of the man as he jabbed his finger towards the sky. "If you look up you can also see blue." A bird-eagle? Flew above. Spring might come earlier than expected. "Nothing in the world is purely black and white- including the hearts of men." It sounded like something Alex would say, but somehow not as pathetic. "Or women, as the case may be. Thanks for showing us soldiers some mercy."

Silence. Mercy wasn't something she did well, but apparently you can't have a simple white heart. "I don't know what you're talking about."

* * *

"Captain Buccaneer died with a smile."

A beat.

"If he died with a smile we shouldn't cry over him."  
The facts, as simple as they came. Mourning would hinder their performance, endanger the mission. The man had a death wish anyways, too cheeky with her, to eager to fight, to die in the field. He got his wish, he obeyed her orders. The man was another number to add to the list of dead soldiers who's bodies were still fresh from the day. She still didn't have a total, but there were too many. One too many.

* * *

A headstone.  
Silence.

"Buccaneer.."

She hadn't gone back to grieve with his family, his sisters and their kids. His father and grandparents. There were still funerals she had to attend. She'd not physically written a speech, and she hadn't said anything other than the usual 'A good man, a good friend, a good soldier has lost his life for Amestris. He will be missed' every commanding officer had to say that when one of theirs died. Technically she hadn't been his commanding at the time, but that man had been fired and was in jail. His loyalties hadn't been towards that man anyways. Her speech was meant for him alone, but now it seemed pointless. Talking to a gravestone would do nothing, she wasn't religious, he wouldn't hear. He was dead and decomposing, his ear canals weren't that good.

"You're supposed to answer right away. You always had nerve, and now you're making me wait. "

* * *

AN: I don't really know what this is.. Not edited and slightly Olivieer, as that's what I'm obsessed with at the moment. R&R please.


End file.
